Have you heard that Jesus loves you? Chances are, at some point in your life, you’ve either had these words spoken to you, or you’ve come across them in a book or on a sign or tee-shirt…

You’ve probably heard a lot more teaching on the Heart of Christ for you, but equally as important is the Heart and will of our Heavenly Father! He loves us and is as just as active in our lives as God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, and in this post I hope you are able to learn a bit more about Him and His nature.

The work of the Holy Spirit is so often overlooked or not brought up. Through this post, you can learn to understand more about who the Holy Spirit is, and what His work in your life looks like.

Have you ever struggled with feeling unworthy of the love of Jesus? Maybe not just unworthy, but completely not fit for it? Well, Jesus wants you anyway, and here you can find out why.

Christmas is not always the most wonderful time of the year. For some, the season can carry heartache and painful memories of loved ones lost. And that is ok. Let’s try to be sensitive to those around us as we celebrate our Savior’s birth.

You can feel it in the air when you select a gift for someone after thoughtfully searching and choosing, as you wrap it carefully, and then finally present it to that person. A moment of vulnerability sits in as you watch in anticipation. “Will they like it?” Similarly, God opened himself up to feel that same vulnerability in the gift He gave us at the first Christmas.

Do you ever struggle with thankfulness amidst difficult situations? Thankfulness is a choice. The reality is that we won’t always feel like being thankful, but in these moments, we can still choose to give thanks for everything. How? Because we know that God is still in control and He uses all things in this fallen world to accomplish His purposes: one of which is the sanctification of His children! Read on to discover more.

When reflecting on all the goodness in our life, even that brought about somehow in God’s mysterious plan by suffering or loss or heartache, we change our perspective and our thinking from the core of our being.  Perhaps it is more accurate to say that GOD changes our perspective and our thinking.

When Heather asked me to write about gratitude for this month, I immediately responded yes…

Appreciation. We all are in need of a good dose of this from time to time. Do you feel up to a good challenge? If so, we have created a calendar for you to be the difference maker this month.

God wants to use your rough stories for His plan and purpose. He can repurpose your brokenness and make something new and beautiful from it. All you have to do is let Him work.

Are you weighed down by sin you've walked through or are currently walked through? You don't need to hold onto that weight anymore. Give your sin to Jesus and let Him heal you from your shame and brokenness.

Forgiveness doesn’t look like what you (and I) have been taught. Here you will find a fresh (and challenging) perspective on forgiveness, one that shows you how to do so The Jesus Way. This transactional approach to forgiveness is modeled by Christ and leads to restored relationships, renewed health, and a life of freedom when you learn to embrace this method. What are you waiting for? 

As Christians, we are called to forgive others just like Christ forgave us when He died on the cross for our sins. Are you willing to forgive someone’s debt just like Christ did for you?

Breath prayers are a simple and effective way to calm the nervous system and connect with the heart of the Father by combining deep breathing exercises with prayers of meditation on God’s word. When you are breathing deeply, you stimulate the vagus nerve which helps regulate your parasympathetic nervous system and send a message to your brain that tells you to relax.

Letting yourself heal from your past mistakes, decisions, whatever you’ve been going through, is hard. However, giving all of those mistakes and decisions to the Lord and letting Him heal you are going to bring so much joy you’ll be shocked. Let Him in and let Him start His healing process.

This week, my “worst week” in a long time, had been overwhelming at multiple moments and yet, I was able to have a peace that could have only come from God. Even in the chaos, I could still see God and His goodness at work because I have been learning that gratitude is a choice. Read on to learn more about how God showed up amidst the chaos of my emotionally exhausting week.

Culture shock doesn’t have to be a bad thing if your heart is open to learning what God has for you to see. Thailand and Indonesia taught me some valuable lessons in gratitude. I hope that you are blessed by what I learned.

It is only by recognizing that our blessings have a single source rooted in a real, personal, living, and loving Giver that allows that source to take root in our hearts. Only then can that root establish itself and begin to have Its way in our lives.

Grace, gifts, and gratitude are all freely given. Romans 5:20 says that where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. Should it not follow then that super-abounding grace ought to be followed by super-abounding gratitude?

Is the gratitude that flows from your life as abounding as the grace that has flowed into your life? If not, why is that?